New Delhi, April 10
Army Chief General VK Singh has formally written to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) about the bribe offered to him for allegedly clearing the purchase of all-terrain vehicles for the armed forces.

General VK Singh's written complaint to the CBI mentions that he was offered bribe by Lieutenant General Tejinder Singh (retd) to clear the purchase.

Sources say the complaint details the sequence of events that led to the bribe being offered. Senior CBI officials are examining the written complaint and sources said that the investigating agency was not ruling out registering a complaint against Lt Gen Tejinder Singh.

Senior CBI officials including the Directorate of Prosecution are meeting to examine the complaint and how it will stand scrutiny in court.

The CBI will also seek legal opinion from the Attorney General on the contents of the complaint and a decision on further action will be taken tomorrow after his comments are received.

General VK Singh today sent his complaint along with some documents on the alleged bribe offer. The contents of the complaint are "highly sensitive and confidential". The Army Chief had claimed in media interviews that an equipment lobbyist had offered him a bribe of Rs 14 crore, a matter he had reported to the Defence Minister.

Meanwhile, the Patiala House Courts have recorded Lt Gen Tejinder Singh's statement in the criminal defamation case that he filed against General VK Singh and four other Army officers. The court will give its order on April 21 whether or not to summon General VK Singh.

Lt Gen Tejinder Singh filed the case after the Army in a press note named him as the one who offered a bribe to the Army Chief to clear a deal for the purchase of Tatra trucks. Tejinder Singh hit back accusing the top brass of misusing their official positions to level false accusations against him.

Taking cognisance of Lt Gen Tejinder Singh's complaint, the court had asked him to record evidence in support of his allegations levelled against the Army Chief and four others.

Besides General VK Singh, he has also named Vice-Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General SK Singh, Lieutenant General BS Thakur (Director General, Military Intelligence).